Thirty-five business and civil society organizations have called for the removal of what they describe as questionable insertions worth ₱180 billion in the proposed 2027 national budget, according to Manila Bulletin. The groups made the demand as lawmakers continue deliberations on the spending measure.
The coalition's appeal was also reported by Inquirer.net and the Daily Tribune, both of which covered the business groups' push to cleanse the 2027 budget of dubious items.
The call comes amid separate scrutiny of budget items. Philstar.com reports that Malacañang has defended insertions linked to Sandro Marcos, while the Philippine News Agency reports that the Senate has flagged ₱266 billion in Department of Public Works and Highways projects for further review.
The reports do not detail which specific projects the 35 groups are contesting, nor did the available material indicate how lawmakers have responded to their demand.
Watch for whether the contested insertions survive the bicameral deliberations, and for the Senate's separate review of the flagged public works allocations.
